Sound Tribe Sector 9

[JAM BAND] It takes seeing a live show by Sound Tribe Sector 9 to truly understand what the California-based band is all about. In avoiding the hippie-dance stigma that shrouds the “jam band” genre, STS9 chooses to up the dance factor of its performances by playing hard-hitting melodies and Daft Punk covers, and even getting acts like Snoop Dogg and Bassnectar to open. This is a far cry from your parents’ Grateful Dead concerts or older brother’s Phish shows. Not to say the band doesn’t cherish the whole improvisation concept: All the members are technically sound, mixing funk and jazz melodies with electronic synths and percussion. And, similar to the genre’s founding bands,Tribe has an extremely loyal following—the only difference is, their fans expect to get a little sweatier at shows.